New Year’s Resolutions for Healthcare: Followup!

Happy Friday everyone!

Before I dive in to this week’s topic, I wanted to mention some things I have coming up.

Tutorials and ‘Best Of’ posts: I’ve noticed a lot of you really like the tutorials I put together, such as the one last week about getting a professional email address. Are there other tutorials you’d like to see?

I’m also thinking of doing more posts about tools you can use in your business. For example, there are dozens of email marketing programs out there now, including the one I use, Mailchimp. But I’ve actually tested a bunch of them! Would you like to hear more about the various options?

If there are any topics you’d like to see me write about, tutorial or technical, let me know!

Podcast! I’ll be launching a podcast in July! It is still in the very infant stages of planning, but what I can share right now is it will be on Massage Therapy marketing and business skills. I’ll be focusing on the Ontario/Canada situation, since a lot of the materials out there are written for an American audience. If you’d like me to tackle certain topics, please let me know!

Phew! Ok, here’s what I’m actually writing to you all about this week: a check-in with my New Year’s Revolution.

My word for the year is kindness. How can I be kinder to myself and my business? A recap of what that means for me:

So instead, I’m going to focus this year on what is most kind to myself, my clients and my business. What actions can I take that will be most authentic? Which projects should I take on because they are a good match (and kind to my business)? How will I approach teaching my e-course and coaching students that will be the most kind to them and their businesses?

I’d have to say the biggest challenge over the last few months is referrals.

Now, let’s be super clear here: referrals generally are a good thing, and I’m always happy to talk to anyone my clients, friends and family send my way! Referrals are a great way to grow your business and take on new clients. Thanks to anyone who sends me a referral! 🙂

However, what do you do when you are referred someone who isn’t a good fit for what you do? That gets into tricky territory, because chances are you really want to help them out, but aren’t sure if it’s a great idea, since your skills and focus aren’t in line with what they need.

What’s the kind thing to do here?

I really struggled with this one a few times recently when friends or other clients referred me people who were looking for something that wasn’t a good match for what I do. I truly wanted to help them!

But the thing is, the most helpful thing I could do in those situations was let them know I wasn’t a good match. The best thing for their business isn’t working with me, but finding someone who is great at doing what they need done.

This is a big learning curve for me, and I think it is for a lot of us. But the most kind thing to do is to be honest. So far, everyone who I’ve politely said no to has been great about it, and most seemed grateful for my honesty.

The other big challenge as of late is balancing all the various work I have right now. Like most (all?) entrepreneurs I really do want to produce my best work at all times and make sure I meet all my deadlines, not just for my clients, but those that I set for myself. But, I have a tendency to take on too much at once and find I don’t have much breathing room for other important things, like spending time outside or with my family and friends. While I think I have a pretty awesome job, it’s not realistic or healthy to work 24/7. That’s not kind to anyone, including my clients, since I can’t really produce good work if I’m always go-go-go-go.

So there’s my summary from the last two months!

How are your businesses doing this year? Are you working on a particular word, focus or goal? I’d love to hear from you.

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